Prevalence of Dyslipidaemia and Associated Risk Factors in a Rural Population in South-Western Uganda: A Community Based Survey

BackgroundThe burden of dyslipidaemia is rising in many low income countries. However, there are few data on the prevalence of, or risk factors for, dyslipidaemia in Africa.MethodsIn 2011, we used the WHO Stepwise approach to collect cardiovascular risk data within a general population cohort in rural south-western Uganda. Dyslipidaemia was defined by high total cholesterol (TC) ≥ 5.2 mmol/L or low high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) ResultsLow HDL-C prevalence was 71.3% and high TC was 6.0%. In multivariate analysis, factors independently associated with low HDL-C among both men and women were: decreasing age, tribe (prevalence highest among Rwandese tribe), lower education, alcohol consumption (comparing current drinkers to never drinkers: men adjusted (a)OR=0.44, 95%CI=0.35-0.55; women aOR=0.51, 95%CI=0.41-0.64), consuming 6% (men aOR=3.00, 95%CI=1.37-6.59; women aOR=2.74, 95%CI=1.77-4.27). The odds of high TC was also higher among married men, and women with higher education or high BMI.ConclusionLow HDL-C prevalence in this relatively young rural population is high whereas high TC prevalence is low. The consequences of dyslipidaemia in African populations remain unclear and prospective follow-up is required.